Higher Productivity Freight Vehicle Access in Victoria
Container Transport Alliance Australia (CTAA) Alliance Companies met with VicRoads on Thursday, 27th August, to discuss issues central to achieving broader road freight access for Higher Productivity Freight Vehicles (HPFVs) at higher mass in Victoria. It was a very useful meeting, contributing to more transparency and understanding regarding the issues involved.
We are following up with the Victorian Minister for Roads, Luke Donnellan, to provide him with an operator perspective on developments to date, and to reconfirm the importance & urgency of joint initiatives to achieve HPFV higher mass access as soon as practicable. We are also continuing our work with key inner west Local Councils adjacent to the Port of Melbourne regarding "last mile" access, and a campaign for Councillors and Local Council officials to experience directly the safety and productivity benefits of HPFVs.
Import Industry Advice Notice XX/2015
Brown Marmorated Stink Bug Season 2015-2016 Who does this notice affect?
This notice is of interest to clients in the import and shipping industry, including
importers and customs brokers. It concerns those involved with the importation of targeted break bulk and some containerised vehicles (including boats) and machinery shipped from mainland United States from 1 September 2015 to 30 April 2016 inclusive.
What has changed?
In consultation with industry, the Department of Agriculture finalised measures to manage the 2015-2016 seasonal risk of brown marmorated stink bug infestations in sea cargo from the United States. This notice provides further clarification on these measures.
Breakbulk
· From 1 September 2015, all used goods in the target tariffs shipped as breakbulk must be treated for potential stink bug infestations no more than 96 hours prior to shipment on or before 30 April 2016.
· New goods in the target tariffs manufactured and/or stored between 1 September 2015 and 1 December 2015 and shipped as break bulk on or before 30 April 2016 must undergo offshore treatment, unless subject to safeguarding arrangements approved by the department.
· New goods in the target tariffs manufactured after 1 December 2015 and shipped as break bulk on or before 30 April 2016 require a consignment specific manufacturer’s new and used and not field tested (NUFT) declaration which includes the date and place of manufacture.
· Goods that arrive untreated must be treated onshore on wharf or at a QAP class 1.1 if safe to move. Treatment must occur within a 48 hour time frame at the wharf of arrival. If this cannot be arranged, the goods will not be permitted discharge but may be shipped to another port where treatment facilities are available or may be exported.
Containerised
· FCL/ FCX containerised goods in the target tariffs are subject to the same
requirements as break bulk o for used goods shipped between 1 September 2015 and 30 April 2016, except that the treatment window prior to loading will not apply o for new goods manufactured and/or stored between 1 September 2015 and 1 December 2015 and shipped seals intact or for new goods manufactured after 1 December 2015.
· As with last season, LCL containerised goods will not be targeted under these measures.
· FCL/FCX containerised that arrive untreated will require mandatory treatment on shore. Containers will be permitted discharge to the wharf if the seals are intact, and moved to either a QAP class 1.1 or 1.3 (if fumigation facilities are available) for treatment.
Season dates
The measures apply to target goods shipped from all mainland ports in the United States from 1 September 2015 to 30 April 2016 inclusive, and will remain in place for the entire season unless pest infestations are detected. Should this occur, the department may impose emergency requirements similar to those applied in the 2014-2015 season.
Target goods
As per last season, new and used vehicles, vessels and machinery continue to be the target goods, although the department has scaled back applicable tariffs. Items such as locomotives and rolling stock, mowers, motor bikes and new machinery parts are now excluded. Goods that fall outside of these tariffs may still be subject to random, full or partial unpack verification inspection on arrival.
Treatments
The treatment conditions are:
· Sulfuryl fluoride – at least 48g/m3 for 6 hours or longer or at least 16g/m3 for 12 hours or longer both with an end point reading of 50% or more of the initial concentration and conducted at a temperature of 10 °C or higher. Please note this temperature is 5 °C lower than the MeBr conditions below.
· Methyl bromide – at least 16g/m3 for 12 hours or longer with an end point reading of 50% or more of the initial concentration and conducted at a temperature of 15 °C or higher. Please note this temperature is 5 °C higher than the SF conditions above.
· Heat – at 50 °C or greater for at least 20 minutes in the coldest location in the vehicle.
Treatment time before loading
· Break bulk goods treated before 1 December must undergo treatment within 96 hours of loading.
· Break bulk goods treated after 1 December are unlikely to become re-infested, so are not subject to a treatment window.
· Containerised goods sealed after treatment and arriving seals intact are not subject to a treatment window.
Alternative arrangements—safeguarding
Safeguarding is a detailed pest risk management plan/system that can be implemented by manufacturers offshore as an alternative to the mandatory pre-shipment treatment requirements. Safeguarding arrangements must be approved by the department and goods that arrive without an approved arrangement in place will require mandatory treatment onshore. Guidance on applying for an approved arrangement is available on the department’s website.
Charging
All charges for the department’s services in documentary processing, risk assessments and inspections will be directed to the owner/importer of the goods automatically, using existing entry management processes for all imported goods. This will be revised only if a new infestation of viable stink bugs is detected on board a vessel prior to goods discharge to the wharf.
The department will not be charging for the assessment of applications for safeguarding arrangements, as these arrangements are being trialled this season.
Further information
For further information, please see Frequently Asked Questions or contact
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Perth Freight Link Project will begin next year, says Canberra
Senator for Western Australia, Mathias Cormann, has again announced that Canberra is confident that both phases of the $1.6bn Perth Freight Link will be underway by 2016, despite WA Premier Colin Barnett being unable to confirm in parliament earlier this month, a 2016 commencement.
On August 18, Labor member for West Swan, Rita Saffioti, asked Premier Barnett during parliamentary question time, “Who is correct – the Premier or Mr Cormann? Will stage 2 commence next year?”
Mr Barnett replied that until an exact route for stage two is determined, and all the necessary approvals are in place, and the contracts are signed, and construction commissioned, “no-one can put an exact timing on that”.
However, Mr Cormann said that the Perth Freight Link is long overdue and that the Commonwealth are working with the Barnett Government to finally make the project a reality.
Mr Cormann said that while more trade through WA, and in particular, The Port of Fremantle, is a positive, it also means more trucks on the roads to Fremantle Port.
“Currently those trucks are using fragmented and inefficient sections of our road network, mixing with commuter and local traffic, creating excessive disruptions to local communities,” he said.
“Without the Perth Freight Link as a productivity enhancing piece of strategic road infrastructure, this worsening congestion will increasingly act as a handbrake on our economy.”
Meanwhile, shadow parliamentary secretary for Western Australia, the Hon Alannah Mactiernan said there was no careful planning or Infrastructure Australia assessment prior to the announcement of the Perth Freight Link in July, 2014.
“The Perth Freight Link is an irresponsible, ill-planned project that will worsen the congestion problems around Fremantle and threaten WA’s future trade growth by leaving us short of critical port capacity,” said Ms Mactiernan.
Instead, Ms Mactiernan said, the Barnett and Abbott Governments should get on with planning and developing the outer harbour at the Port of Fremantle, rather than “wasting scarce taxpayer money on outdated roads on a constrained port”.
Problems with the project that have been cited by the Labor Party and opposing groups such as Rethink The Link, include, the destruction of wetlands, the threat to homes and businesses, and the fact that the Link will stop 1.5km short of the Port of Fremantle.
The Perth Freight Link is jointly funded by the Commonwealth and WA State Governments to improve freight productivity in Western Australia, and particularly to and from the Port of Fremantle, as well as reduce traffic congestion, reduce noise and reduce emissions on suburban roads.
It involves building a freight freeway into Fremantle in two sections, both of which are due to be contracted to developers later this year. The project is expected to be completed by 2019.
Main Roads WA estimates that the Perth Freight Link will result in the removal of 500 trucks per day from Leach Highway, between Kwinana Freeway and Stock Road, by 2031.
The Port of Fremantle’s total trade last year surpassed 33 million tonnes, and was 4.5% up on the previous financial year. Container throughput for the year was over 703,000 teu, also up 4.5% on 2012-13.
Minister reinforces privatisation plans
Victorian ports minister Luke Donnellan has reinforced his government’s focus on privatising the port of Melbourne while keeping a second port at Hastings or elsewhere on the backburner.
Mr Donnellan spoke to an attentive audience during the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers Australia New Zealand branch 2015 gala dinner held at the Langham Hotel in Melbourne.
“There would be no government in the world that would start a second port when you’ve got a fully functional port in the centre of Melbourne which has got substantial capacity to keep increasing.
“Further, if you are actually going to put up your port up (for lease) for 50 years, the idea of suddenly selling your port while going into competition with the people you’ve just sold the port to and setting up a container port down the road,” Mr Donnellan said….. “It suggests to me that no-one would buy the port of Melbourne.” The minister went on to describe plans of the previous government for competition between Melbourne and Hastings as “absolutely bunkum”.
He told the gathering the government would look to Infrastructure Victoria to provide “an independent assessment” on a site for a second port in the longer term whether that was Hastings or ‘Bay West’ “which has got great advantages in terms of rail and roads nearby”.
Imports from China up 10%, says DFAT
The total value of Australia’s imports from China rose 10.1% in 2014, compared with 2013, and were worth $54.3bn, or 16% of Australia’s total imports.
US imports to Australia jumped 6% and were worth almost $42bn, while imports from Japan decreased by 6.8% despite the country being Australia’s third largest import source for the year, at $20bn.
Singapore, Germany, and Thailand followed, though Germany’s imports to Australia decreased by 7.2% in 2014, according to the recent Composition of Trade 2014 report. Within Australia’s top 15 import trade partners, imports from Vietnam grew the most in terms of value in 2014, up 23.9% since the previous year. And imports from South Korea were growing at a rate of approximately 12.8% per annum, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s recent report.
Most import categories fared well, with general merchandise increasing by 3.4% from $254.3bn in 2013 to $263bn in 2014, based on the current price of the merchandise.
Within this category, consumption goods rose 5% from $78.77bn in 2013 to $82.82bn in 2014 to meet the same percentage on a year-by-year basis over a five-year period. And intermediate and other goods rose by 5.6% in 2014 from $110.6bn to $116.8bn.
Despite these increases in import values, and Australia’s total import value for 2014 increasing by 2.3% since 2013 to $337bn, the total volume of imported goods and services decreased by 1.7%.
The top five faring goods and services imports for Australia last year were: personal travel, crude petroleum, refined petroleum, passenger motor vehicles, and telecom equipment.
